Some HD2 Questions

Because there have been so many reviews around the HD2, weâ€™ve decided to do things a little differentlyâ€¦ 🙂

Iâ€™ve been trudging through the pile of questions people wanted and so here are some answers (thereâ€™ll be a bunch more soon, though Iâ€™ll post them so they donâ€™t appear on the front page, but you can find them on the Leo section here, or on the RSS feeds/Twitter feeds).

i’m interested in the screen material and how flexible the device is if you try and bend it. Also general durability of the micro USB connector. screen visibility when in direct sunlight would be interesting too. could also be good if you got one of those capacitive styli and used it for a few days to see how practical it is.

Screen is glass, and judging by some of the videos on YouTube itâ€™s pretty scratch resistant. Itâ€™s very very responsive (sometimes a little too responsive) and the lack of precision isnâ€™t obvious. The device is very solid, bending it doesnâ€™t really do anything at all. The microUSB connecter seems fairly robust, and Iâ€™m using it less than I used the connector on my Diamond due to the 3.5mm headphone jack. In direct sunlight itâ€™s by no means the best device, but itâ€™s not too bad. Will try and get some pictures when it stops raining in Bristol. Havenâ€™t managed to get my hands on a capacitive stylus, though I donâ€™t think itâ€™s entirely necessary. It seems pretty slick as is, and Iâ€™ve not been left wanting.

Also how effective is the LED flash in the dark?

The LED flash is rather bright in â€œnormalâ€ mode and in â€œbright modeâ€ itâ€™s blinding. Itâ€™s great for finding my way up stairs in the dark, or avoiding the obstacle course that is my floor when I try and get anywhere.

I already have the Leo software on my HD so know what its like, so the only thing i really want to know is at what point does the HD2 start to fail to play movies smoothly. What sort of bit rate and file types will cause stuttering. Id like someone to try an HD .mkv file and see what happens.

MKV isnâ€™t natively supported, and Iâ€™ve yet to find one small enough that it wonâ€™t destroy the 2GB microSD card whilst I wait for my 16GB one to arrive. Itâ€™s fine one 800×480 1MB/s MP4s, and could probably go higher though I canâ€™t see the point. Films look utterly gorgeous, and with CorePlayer Iâ€™m playing 700mb DVD rips with no stuttering at all.

On which apps you can pinch to zoom in and if you find an ability to make more apps pinch-zoom-enabled (e.g. something in the registry).

I must admit I havenâ€™t looked in too much detail at the pinch-zooming, though itâ€™s now on my todo list. The only place lacking the magnifier (that actually needs it) is the Tasks UI, why it couldnâ€™t be a part of Manila I donâ€™t know.

IÂ´m especially interested in the usability of the new capacitive touchscreen: What are the advantages, what are the disadvantages in all-day-use. Is it difficult to get used to it coming from a resistive touchscreen and being accustomed to using your fingernails? Then, having the huge screen in mind, is it possible to use the device one-handed (guess that might be hard).

One handed is okay, though reaching the start button if youâ€™re left handed is a bit of a stretch (the hardware button is much easier to hit). You do get used to the size though, and my Diamond now feels really small with my Prophet seeming â€œnormal sizedâ€. The screen is both fantastic and annoying. Itâ€™s very very sensitive, and you quickly get used to not being able to use your fingernails, but in some situations itâ€™s a little to sensitive. If you have your thumb resting near the edge of the screen it quite often interferes, though generally, the sensitivity is just right.

Keep the questions coming in if you have them, and Iâ€™ll answer them as soon as I can!

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